Forgotten Forest
by Gemkat5
Summary: Distraught over Sarah's rejection, Jareth roams into the Forgotten Forest where dreams can live forever. Can Sarah save him or will she become a victim to the Forests enchantment as well?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The only thing I claim to own is the insane idea that formed this story. Everything else is borrowed from respective owners.

**Forgotten Forest**

Chapter One

"_You have no power over me._"

Jareth will never forget the determined look in her eyes when she had spoken those words. The contempt, the victory that was hers, and there wasn't anything he could do to stop her.

He hadn't proclaimed an alternate deal with her at all. He thought that she would have chosen to have all her dreams, one of which now included him.

But she hadn't chosen her dreams, or him, and hadn't even tried to speak to him or stop him before he had swooped out of her life forever.

He'd waited, painfully hoping that she would include him when she had started to call upon her friends. But she never so much as spoke his name, not even referred to his title; never- it seemed- gave him any thought whatsoever.

Her rejection hurt like nothing he had ever experienced in his life. All his hopes of having her with him died a slow death until there was nothing left but numbness.

He became melancholy and lethargic, taking walks through his kingdom with nowhere in particular in mind.

Often he would be gone from the castle for days before someone would inform the castle guards of his whereabouts, getting tired of him sulking around and making everyone else depressed along with him.

Then one day someone watched as the goblin king wandered into the Forgotten Forest. Of course he would be immune to the magical effects of forgetfulness the area emitted, unless he didn't keep his guard up, then he would be as susceptible as anyone else to the enchantments of the forest.

After a full week of Jareth's absence a significant change occurred in the kingdom. It was a sign that Jareth had indeed fallen victim to the forest's enchantments and needed to be found.

Of course there weren't many goblins left for this search since most of them had ran after their king without any forethought and had quickly 'forgotten' what they were in there for in the first place.

Every once in a while one of them would wander back to the stone path and find his way to the castle, but on the whole, the goblin city was nearly a ghost town.

The labyrinth herself took a deep sigh and went to sleep to await the return of her ruler and king.

No more changes happened within the labyrinth, no dead ends popping up out of nowhere, no more expanding or decreasing, no more wishes were granted, and no more children were taken.

Until one night, nearly three decades later, a child's plea was answered.

XxXxX

"Zachary Williams, come out from behind there!"

Sarah Williams taunted her four years old nephew as she crawled on her hands and knees to the back of the couch, reaching her arm out to grab the boy from the small space between the wall and furniture.

"No," the boy laughed, giggling excitedly as his aunt's hand almost grabbed his foot.

With a little squeal, he scooted from behind the furniture and ran into the dining room for a nice dose of 'round – round' as the child called it.

Sarah sunk back on her butt and leaned her head against the wall, seeing where the boy went rushing off to and knowing what was next in an attempt to catch him. A good chase around the table.

"I'm too old for this shit," she grumbled as she tiredly got to her feet.

Reaching the dining room, however, the little boy had no idea how tired his Aunt Sarah really was. She played his games and let him wear himself out by running amuck all over the house while she merely spurred him on from certain vantage points.

Finally getting him at least upstairs, she tricked him into his room and grabbed him up in her arms, tickling his belly with raspberries as she spun him around in a circle, holding him tightly against her.

He was laughing so hard his face was redder than red, his breathing came out in short gasps, and he cried for more!

"No more, Zach," Sarah told him winded, putting him down to the floor. "Aunt Sarah's tired," she laughed. "Let's get your jammies on so mommy and daddy won't be upset when they come home, okay?"

"No! I wanna play round – round!"

"No more round- round, Zach. Time for jammies, and I'll read you a story."

"I don't wanna!" he yelled, and scurried under his bed when Sarah held up his jammies. "I hate you! You meanie Auntie!"

"Yea, I'm meanie Auntie," she sighed. "I'll take you to the park tomorrow to see the ducks if you put on your jammies," she cajoled the child.

He wasn't falling for it.

"No ducks at park, they fly away."

"Alright, Tob… Zachary," she grinned at her own slip up.

He really was so much like his father, only Zach was much more hyper and creative than Toby ever was.

"I'll just have to crawl under there with you."

He squealed and ran out the other side.

Laughing, Sarah got to her feet and started to crawl over the bed towards him, knowing that if she had went around the bed he would've ducked underneath again.

"I don't wanna wear jammies," he cried, backing up to the wall near his dresser. "I wanna play round- round."

His tears flowed freely now, and if Sarah hadn't been so tired, they would've worked and she would've played round - round once more.

But she was tired. She'd worked a full day at her job, then filled-in at the daycare center when Fran had called out sick.

Her brother had called the center saying their babysitter canceled on them and they had reservations for dinner and a show to celebrate his and Judy's sixth year anniversary.

"Come on, Zach. I'll read you a story after you get your…"

"I don't wanna! I wish gobin king take you way right now!"

Sarah froze and stared at her nephew in shock.

She had never read that story to him, never read it to Toby either after what had happened.

Suddenly she noticed the wind outside shaking the branches in the trees. Had it been doing that the whole while?

Just as suddenly as her fears reared up she calmed them once more. Children can't wish away adults! That's just absurd.

Then a bolt of lightening streaked the sky and all the lights went out in the house.

Without a thought Sarah lurched across the room and grabbed Zachary in her arms, turning back towards the window just in time to see the shadowed silhouette appear in the dark room.

"You have to be kidding me!" she stated, holding Zach to her tightly. "You honestly would use any excuse to torment me, wouldn't you?"

"I'm not here to torment you. I heard a wish and answered the summons."

"Who are you?" Sarah asked, knowing that it wasn't 'him' standing before her, and backed further against the wall.

"I'm the goblin king, I've come to …"

"No, you're not," She cut him off defiantly. "I've met the Goblin King personally and you are most definitely not him." She shifted a curious, yet oddly calm, Zachary in her arms. "And a child can't wish away an adult, he can't even pronounce goblin right!"

"If you had let me finish, Sarah, I was going to say that his wish was used as an excuse for me to see you. But only to say hello, not to torment."

Just then the lights came back on and Sarah was met with blue eyes that were most definitely not 'his'.

The tall lean form, though similar to Jareth, was slightly shorter. The light brown hair that flopped carelessly over his face and ears wasn't even close to the Fae she had expected to see.

"Who are you?" she asked in a deep sinister tone, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

He smiled a smile that wasn't at all unpleasant, and took a half step closer, but no more than that.

"I'm not sure how to explain this," he stated sheepishly, looking away from her to search the floor for answers. "But you were… uhm… you were the first friend I ever had in the labyrinth."

He raised uncertain eyes and met her wary gaze, hoping for some recognition to filter in her eyes.

She scrutinized him intently. She knew who he was claiming to be, but…

"Hoggle?"

After she said his name, his eyes widened with unexpected surprise, he raised his head proudly and smiled that she recognized him despite his different appearance.

"Oh, Hoggle," she continued empathically, seeing that it really was her friend behind those blue eyes. "What has he done to you?"

"I can't explain it here. I don't actually have the power to be here at all. The labyrinth sent me, Sarah. She used the boy's wayward wish as an excuse to transport me."

He ran his hand through his floppy hair with long elegant fingers on a graceful hand.

"If you want to know what happened, you have to go back with me… now."

"I can't do that, Hoggle," she told him, her voice laced with uncertainty and fear. "If I go back, I'm afraid…"

"Jareth can't hurt you, I can promise you that much. He's… he's missing. That's how I got my true self back again."

"What do you mean he's…"

"Sarah. I have to go back. Either come with me now and I can explain, or… or it was just really nice to see you again, and I mean that whole heartedly."

"Bye-bye!" Zach waved at Hoggle.

"I can't leave him alone. You know that. And I'm not taking him… there."

Suddenly a goblin appeared behind Hoggle. Sarah jumped at the unexpectedness but then looked at it, her, curiously.

She wore a pretty dress of blue with a delicate flowery design and was taller than most of the goblins she had seen before.

"I can watch him, my Lady," the goblin told her, curtsying before her properly. "My name is Dianna and I am well experienced with human children."

"You're kidding me?" Sarah asked flatly.

"Sarah," Hoggle stressed her name. "I think the labyrinth wants you to help find Jareth. You're the only one strong enough, the only one he'd listen to, the only one who has a chance."

"I am experienced, my Lady," Dianna repeated. "I can make it seem as though you have fallen asleep in the dark so they won't know you are missing."

Sarah looked uncertainly from the female goblin to Hoggle, who looked like a fae, then at Zachary.

"Auntie Sarah, go bye-bye."

He hugged her around the neck as though that was all the answer she needed, then kicked his legs to be put down.

Sarah had the overwhelming feeling that this wasn't the first time her nephew had seen a goblin, especially the female standing with them in the room. He actually looked excited to see her.

Glancing at Dianna, Sarah noticed the warm fond expression in her big hazel eyes.

"Uhm…" Sarah felt cornered, but something told her she could trust this goblin. "He's already had his snack," she started to direct, shifting a wiggly Zachary in her arms.

"He gets no more sugar. He still needs to brush his teeth and get his jammies on, and… he's being insistent on another game of 'round-round', which is…"

"I am aware of 'round-round', my Lady," Dianna explained in a sweet voice. "Zachary has called upon the goblins many times to play with him."

"Sarah, I don't have time," Hoggle reaffirmed, and held his hand out to her.

Feeling really bewildered, she hugged her nephew tightly, the boy made exaggerated grunting noises at being squeezed so tightly. She then handed him to the goblin female and took Hoggle's outstretch hand.

Her fingers no sooner touched his when everything around her shifted and blurred for a moment.

When she opened her eyes, not realizing that she had closed them in the first place, she found herself in the throne room of the castle beyond the goblin city.

Her eyes filled with nostalgia as she looked around the empty room. Long suppressed memories of a brave little knight, of courageous friends, and a man that she had never been able to forget filled her mind anew.

"Welcome back," Hoggle greeted, not knowing what else to say. "Would you like the good news or the bad news first?" he asked when she turned her gaze to him.

"How about you just start from the beginning and we'll go from there." She crossed her arms expectantly. "How were you turned into a fae, for starters?"

XxXxX

"The beginning," Hoggle repeated with a frown. "Of course you'd want to hear it from the beginning."

He moved a few steps across the room, not realizing how he gained Sarah's attention with his graceful movements.

He was dressed in what appeared to be one of Jareth's outfits consisting of a poets shirt and grey breeches, though the outfit didn't do him the justice it did for Jareth, and brown boots adorned his long lean legs.

He moved with enough grace to give Jareth competition, but lacked the elegance the fae king displayed naturally.

His features weren't as defined as the blonde king's, but attractive still the same. His blue eyes were soft and kind, his brows arched elegantly with the fae characteristic. His face was slightly rounded with a broad forehead that his brown hair flopped over in a boyish manner. His squared jaw and cheekbones complimented full lips and a straight nose.

He was strikingly handsome, Sarah noted, but not as striking as the fae male she remembered from long ago.

"About two centuries ago," Hoggle started. "Jareth and I were competing over…" he paused and looked back at Sarah with a slight blush. "Uhm, a female, actually, one that I was very interested in and Jareth simply wanted to prove he could gain her attentions for the fun of it. Something he did a lot back then," he added with a grimace.

Sarah moved to sit on the step in front of the royal throne as he continued, noting that he had a smooth voice that was pleasant to listen to.

"Well, to make a long story short." He raked his mid-length hair with his fingers, sitting down next to her. "We made a bet as to which one of us she would favor most."

He found something to pick from his trousers, avoiding Sarah's gaze.

"I lost."

He rose to his feet once more, pacing just enough to not be still.

"We bet that the loser would be turned into a troll, made to do the other's bidding, for five centuries."

"Five centuries? Wow, that's a long time." She shifted to keep him in view as he wandered to the side of the throne. "You must have thought you had a good chance to bet something like that."

"Not really," he remarked, peering at her from around the arm of the chair. "I was just that stupid, and five centuries really isn't that long to us."

He stepped closer, feeling the worse of the story was done with.

"Jareth was actually nice about it and turned me into a dwarf instead of a troll, which," he shrugged with a slight chuckle. "Well, Jareth can't stand trolls…" he smirked with humor and Sarah smiled along with him.

Then Hoggle's expression became serious once more.

"That's why he was so adamant about my staying away from you. 'We' knew that I am Fae, but he fell for you, Sarah. He fell for you like he'd never done for another before, and I was a threat."

He moved to sit beside her once more, Sarah tucked her feet on the step under her knees and folded her hands in her lap, watching him as he continued.

"I thought for sure he was going to kill me when you kissed my cheek." He looked at her with a heartfelt expression. "You have no idea how livid he was."

"What happened to him, Hoggle?" Sarah asked softly, seeing a sadness cross his eyes.

"He… he never got over your rejection." He stated quietly, lowering his gaze to the stone floor. "He waited years for you to call him, just to hear you say his name, or any variant of his titles, anything."

He turned away from her to stare out at nothing.

"He wandered into the Forgotten Forest twenty-two of your years ago. Everyone who has tried to find him had been enchanted and either hasn't come back yet, or they don't remember going in there in the first place."

He turned his head to look at her pointedly. "That's the enchantment of the forest, Sarah."

"What's in the forgotten forest?"

"Your dreams," he whispered very softly. "Your fears. Depending on what you take in with you."

"Is he… do you think he's…?" Sarah couldn't bring herself to finish that dreadful question.

Her memories of him had been safely wrapped in her heart all these years. She knew that she couldn't change her mind after she'd grown up and realized how much he had offered her, how much he had wanted her.

She'd spent a lonely life regretting how she had left him. The fallen expression on his face that day still haunted her every time she closed her eyes.

"No, he's not dead. It would take more than an enchantment to kill that bastard." He smiled fondly then became sincere once more. "But he let himself succumb to the forest's illusions. The breaking of his spell over me is proof of that."

He turned sharply to look at her. "I think the labyrinth expects you to go after him, bring him back. You're the only champion, Sarah, your will power and the couple gifts Jareth had given you would give you a good chance."

"What makes you think I'd want to?" she asked, wondering if her heart was in her eyes as much as she thought it was.

Hoggle leaned closer to Sarah, resting his elbows on his knees, and met her gaze intently.

"The labyrinth has chosen you to bring back her ruler and our king, Sarah. She hasn't moved since he went into the Forest. She doesn't breath, there are no children, no wishes, nothing."

He reached out a hand to touch her arm.

"The labyrinth has used your nephew to keep her bond with you, the bond that was created when you defeated Jareth. She thrived on Zachary's dreams, his imagination, and taught him how to use certain words, as you found out tonight."

Sarah absorbed everything he was telling her, knowing that it made sense for Zachary's creative imagination at such a young age.

"But if the labyrinth is that strong, why can't she make him come out herself?"

Hoggle smiled wistfully at her question and sat back, removing his hand from her arm. He had noticed that she hadn't even realized that he had touched her.

"Magic doesn't work that way. The Forgotten Forest is it's own entity separate from the labyrinth, yet they co-exist. He doesn't want to be found, Sarah, or the Forest would have let him go by now."

"So… you're really not the king, then?"

"Hell no," he exclaimed. "I've just been trying to hold what's left together until the rat pulls himself together and resumes his position."

He glanced over at her slyly with a mischievous grin.

"I am a prince though," he winked at her.

She laughed despite herself. "Yea, I remember. Prince of the land of stench."

He snorted. "Yea, that too."

He rose to his feet once more.

"But, no, I really am a prince in my own kingdom." He informed her. "It's not half as grand as the labyrinth," he expressed with arms spread out wide. "But we have ogres and trolls and griffins." He crossed his arms regally. "It's a nice place if I do say so myself."

"Why didn't you just go home since… well, since he disappeared?" she asked, looking up at him.

She shifted her weight on the stone step and placed her hands at each side of her butt.

"Because for all the things Jareth is, Sarah, he's my friend," he answered with heartfelt sincerity. "And I can't abandon his kingdom without trying everything to find him."

He paced slightly, idly picking under his even nails as a distraction.

"Second to that, I'm still obligated to him for three more centuries with that bet. It would be dishonorable to break that oath."

"Wow," she breathed, glancing to the floor thoughtfully. "This is a lot to sink in."

She looked back up at him.

"I'm almost jealous that I'm not your first friend, Hoggle, is that warped or what?"

"You were my first friend while I was a repulsive little scab," he smirked. "I knew you'd fall for him though."

"What makes you think I fell for him? I haven't done anything to encourage his feelings for me in any way." She raised her head and tossed her hair indignantly. "I don't wish, I don't retell the story, I don't even say his name."

"You also don't look happy," he replied softly. "Excuse me for saying it, but you asked." He quirked his brows matter of factly.

"You never married, you never even tried to fall in love. If you ask me, you both were waiting for the other to make the first move and ended up in a stale mate."

"I just never met anyone I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, that's all."

"Yes you did," he said to her solemnly. "You just gave up too soon. You let the dream die."

"What makes you think you know me so well?" she whispered, afraid that he really might know that he was right.

"Because I've seen where your heart lies. I've… wished it were different."

He looked away from her, a sad regret in his eyes.

Realization filled her mind. "Hoggle, I…"

"Don't," he breathed, looking at her pointedly. "We're friends, and that's important to me."

He took a deep breath and stepped away from her.

"Besides," he continued in a lighter tone. "Jareth would have my hide if I so much as dared to think of trying to win you over."

He reached his hand out to her. "Let me show you to your chambers, my Lady." He smiled at her warmly. "You may freshen up and rest while I find someone around here to make us some food."

She took his offered hand and stood up, falling into step next to him as they headed for another chamber. Sarah noticed how quickly he released her hand once she was on her feet.

"Tomorrow I'll show you the way towards the Forgotten Forest." He looked over at her as they walked. "I'm sorry I can't go with you, but I'm not strong enough magically to withstand the enchantment."

"And you think I'm strong enough?" she asked, fear and uncertainty filled her.

"I know you are," he grinned at her with confidence. "You have someone to save, and nothing will stop you from finding him."

XxXxX

Sarah awoke the next morning feeling refreshed, calm – despite the circumstances, and oddly comfortable as though she were home after being away for so long. She had met with Hoggle for breakfast. He was truly a prince in his own right.

She felt regret that he cared for her beyond their friendship, but he reassured her that his affections would only make their friendship stronger and that he accepted that.

After their shared meal of some cheese and fruit, he excused himself from her company, saying he needed to tend to a few things before escorting her to the Forest.

Having free roam of the castle unhindered, she leisurely walked along the hallways and corridors, admiring the sporadic pieces of art that adorned the walls here and there.

She came upon some private chambers and knew as soon as she had opened the doors that they belong to Jareth.

Even after all these years of his absence, all the years that she hadn't seen him, she still recognized his distinct scent that lingered in the room.

Feeling like a snoop, she quietly closed the door with reverence to the king's privacy.

Stepping away from the doors to continue on her way, she heard an odd sound behind her and turned with a start.

There was a wall where there hadn't been one before, blocking the passage that she had come through in the first place. Turning fully she retraced her steps, gasping in surprise as a mirror magically appeared on the wall before her.

"You're trying to tell me something," she whispered, thinking this had to be the work of the labyrinth herself. After all, who else could move stone walls?

She noticed that her reflection didn't appear in the mirror, and yet she wasn't uneasy about that.

"What would you have me know, Labyrinth?" she asked with reverence. "Show me how to find him, and return your ruling king."

The glass before her clouded with swirling mists, the sound of music hauntingly filled her ears.

Sarah closed her eyes at the tune. She breathed deeply in remembrance, bringing her memory of dancing in his arms to the front of her mind.

She could feel the magic settle over her, the dizziness of an enchantment, and opened her eyes.

Placing her hand on the wall for balance, her eyes met with his mismatched ones via the mirror as he swirled her in the dance of her lifetime.

"I remember you," she whispered in response to some unspoken voice, touching the image of his face in the glass.

"You are the dream I could never have," she whispered in a trance-like voice, staring hypnotically at the dancers before her.

"I will find you, and I will have my dream at last."

"Sarah?" Hoggle called from a few feet behind her.

He watched with unease as she raised her hand into the air as though touching something that wasn't there. Or at least not anything he could see.

Her hand fell to her side and she half turned to face him at hearing his voice. Her eyes were glassy and enchanted looking.

His breath caught in his throat with fear for a second, then she blinked and smiled warmly at him.

"Are you finished your errands?" she asked casually, fully turning towards him to meet up with him down the hallway.

"Are you alright?" he asked with concern, her eyes now clear and fully focused on him.

"Yes, I'm fine. I was just wandering around while you took care of your business."

"And… you didn't encounter anything strange, did you?" he asked cautiously, glancing past her down the hallway.

"No, should I have?" she asked, following his gaze behind her.

She frowned slightly at not seeing anything amiss in the hallway she'd just come from and wondered at his odd behavior.

"Nah," he replied, waving his hand carelessly. "I was just making sure, that's all. Things aren't always as they seem in this place, remember?"

"I remember that all too well, Hoggle," she smiled and looped her arm through his at his side.

He bent his elbow formally to be polite but glanced back over his shoulder with a worried frown as he led Sarah back the throne room to prepare for her journey.

Something had happened to her in that hallway, he knew it by the pit in his stomach. He only hoped it was something for Sarah's benefit and nothing that would hurt her while she risked everything to save Jareth.

XxXxX

"I can't give you any fair warning or advice," Hoggle was telling Sarah once they had the entrance to the Forgotten Forest in sight.

"I know not how far it stretches, or how deep it is, or how to encourage you to even find him."

He pulled something from his waist jacket and offered it to her.

"The best I can offer you is this," he stated, handing her a crystal. "I've tried to put as much magic in it as I possible could. Hopefully it can protect you from the illusions and enchantments long enough for you to find him."

He took her by the elbow, his expression very grave. "Sarah, if you feel yourself slipping into a dream, get out, come back here so you can rest and try again at a later time."

"I'll find him, Hoggle, of that much I'm sure," she replied, taking the crystal he offered her with a grateful smile.

They followed the cobble stone path closer to the entrance, already feeling the pull of enchantment.

With the crystal in her hand, Sarah turned to Hoggle and gave him an unexpected hug, along with a peck on the cheek.

"If I can't bring him back with me, Hoggle," she told him as she backed closer to the tree line of the Forest. "Then I won't be coming back at all!"

With that she turned and ran headfast into the Forgotten Forest.

"No!" Hoggle yelled after her, sprinting forward in an attempt to catch her. "Sarah, No! You must come back! Sarah!"

He stopped short of the trees, standing closer than he dared into the enchantment. "Please help her," he whispered to no one in particular as he regrettably had to move away from the Forest.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: The only thing I claim to own is the insane idea that formed this story. Everything else is borrowed from respective owners.

**Forgotten Forest**

Chapter Two

Sarah ran headstrong into the Forest, ignoring Hoggle's cries to go back. Once she was surrounded by trees she slowed her pace to a comfortable walk, glancing around at her surroundings with wonder.

It was absolutely beautiful and tranquil. She could see how one could become lost in it's enchantment.

Raising her hand she glanced at the crystal Hoggle had given her and waywardly remembered a crystal held so long ago in gloved fingers before her eyes, a crystal that held all her dreams in it.

But her dream of Jareth dancing with her was the strongest dream she'd ever had. The only one she played over and over in her mind, in her sleep, and her daydreams.

The one of a possible life that she had been too young to understand what he had been offering.

Suddenly the titillating sounds of music came to her ears. She turned her head in the direction it was coming from and ran in that direction to find it's source.

She ran through the forest, her dress flowing behind her, ribbons in her hair, pearls at her throat.

Running to the sound of the music, the sound of that song that had haunted her day and night for the past twenty-eight years.

She came upon a glade and slowed her pace to a trace-like walk. The music was louder here, very close in fact, but where…?

Then she saw him.

A beautiful man lying in the grass.

She slowly approached him, noting how his clothes were torn and raggy, his blonde hair was dirty and a tangled mess, his skin a pale grey color.

He stared into a crystal that hovered above his face with an expression of regretful longing.

As she drew closer she saw that the crystal held her dream.

She sat beside him, fascinated.

"That's the same dream I have," she told him in awe.

He didn't seem to hear her at first, then reacted almost violently as he rose to his feet and snatched the crystal from the air to cradle it close to his chest.

"Find your own dream!" he hissed at her, his eyes hallow and dark.

"This one's mind! You can't have it!"

He sunk back to the ground again with a harsh thud, crossing his legs in front of him.

He cupped the crystal in his hands and peered at it again, becoming lost once more in his own self despair.

Sarah looked down into her hand and realized that her crystal was missing. She knew she had had one a moment ago.

She glanced around in search of it then moved to sit by the man's side once more.

"I want to watch it too," she insisted, feeling the lure of the dream pulling her in deeper.

She leaned over his bent leg and peered into his crystal as her eyes glazed over.

He hissed at her like a fanged cat and held the magical orb away from her prying eyes.

"I. Said. No!" he hissed sharply.

Sarah looked into his face and was suddenly overcome with fury.

How dare he deny her a dream that was clearly hers!

"I want to see it!" she yelled, and tackled him bodily in an attempt to wrestle the crystal from his hand.

He flung her off of him defensively and rolled to stand, possibly to run away from the intrusive creature, but Sarah wouldn't let him go that easily and tripped him up by the ankles.

"That's my dream!" she seethed.

Landing hard on the ground, the crystal was nearly jolted from his grasp.

With a guttural shout he rolled to his back as she sprung up and body slammed his chest, reaching for the clear ball.

They grappled and twisted with each other, neither willing to share the dream, nor to give it up.

"I want it!" she seethed, getting a hand over the globe while he held it firmly in one palm.

"No! She's mine! You can't have her!" he growled, shoving Sarah with his weight to make her let go.

She rolled off his chest as he pulled his hand with the prize high above them at arms reach.

She grabbed his hair and pulled hard with one hand while clasping her fingers of the other hand with his, the crystal firmly nestled between their palms.

"It's mine!" she growled.

He roared with incredulousness at having his hair pulled and bunted her chest with his forearm, his elbow catching her sharply in a breast.

She screamed out in rage and slapped him hard in his face, her fingernails catching his flesh.

His head reeled sideways, his eyes flashed dangerously before he grabbed her hair with his free hand and gave a powerful yank.

She roared, her eyes blazing, while being pulled back over his chest sideways.

With their joined hands still clasped for ownership, she forcibly stabbed her elbow into his ribs, his fingers tangled in her mass of hair.

"Do not defy me!"

"Defy this, jerk!" she yelled back, twisting her body so that she slammed her knee into the side of his head.

With a power he forgot he had, he raised his upper body from under her and flipped her over to her back to land with a solid thud on the ground.

Her breath was knocked from her lungs from the impact, his weight, pressed murderously on top of her chest with one knee, had her gasping.

She grabbed his throat with her free hand, still keeping her hold on her half of the crystal with their fingers still tightly locked together.

She felt her head swim for the lack of air.

He had the advantage of weight and strength, and was restricting breath to her lungs.

"Jareth," she choked in desperation.

She cried out to the only one she knew could save her.

"Help…me!"

Her words hit him like a brick.

Harder than having his hair pulled, harder than a slap in the face, than having her knee slam into his temple.

Sarah was calling him!

Sarah called his name!

Sarah was in trouble!

The illusion around him evaporated as quickly as turning on a light and he stared down at her as though it were the first time he'd ever seen her before.

"Sarah," he breathed in astonishment and moved his knee from her chest immediately.

She gasped and choked for air as soon as he shifted his weight, though still clung to the crystal and his throat with her hands.

He sat back on his heels, breaking her grip at his throat, to straddle her hips.

She used the opportunity to grab at the crystal with both hands, screaming in desperate frustration at not being able to remove it from his one handed grasp.

"It's mine! That's my dream! I will have it!"

With a clarity he hadn't had in a long time, he saw what she was fighting for. He suddenly remembered everything from his delusion, and let the crystal slip into her grasp.

"Ha! It's mine! My dream!" she laughed madly, clutching the magical object to her chest while trying to scoot herself free from under him.

He noticed the difference in her appearance, the lines around her mouth, her eyes with dark shadows under them.

She was older, so much older than he would think her to be.

And more beautiful than he had ever imagined.

"How long have I been here?" he asked rhetorically, glancing around at their surroundings.

He closed his eyes and let his magic reconnect with the labyrinth, then stared down at Sarah anew as the time lost to him flooded his senses.

"Oh, what have I done?"

Sarah's squirming and frantic cackling brought him back to the current situation.

"I beat you! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" She laughed boisterously, almost sounding insane, and raised the crystal to her eyes to watch the dream spin hypnotically.

"My dream. Mine…forever."

The bruises she had inflicted upon him began to make themselves known. He moved to her side on one knee and lifted her in his arms.

She didn't even glance at him as he carried her out of the Forgotten Forest.

Jareth's stride paused for only a step as they neared the stone pathway.

"Oh, damn," he uttered, seeing Hoggle in his fae form and a troupe of goblins waiting for them to emerge.

"Well don't you look like something a troll dragged through the bog," Hoggle jabbed as Jareth approached with Sarah in his arms.

"Let me tell you something before you can say or do anything else stupid."

Jareth came to stand before the cocky prince and sighed deeply with resignation.

"If you mess it up this time," he stated, nodding towards Sarah. "It's your own damn fault."

The prince pointed a finger at the king menacingly.

"She's loved you this whole time, you piece of dragon shit. Been waiting for you to go get her for at least the past ten years."

Having said his peace Hoggle moved to lead the way to the castle then turned around once more.

"Oh, and by the way," he added with his hands on his hips. "She turned me down flat." He skimmed his hands through the air as emphasis.

"She didn't think about anything but finding your sorry hide!" he pointed at the king with finality.

"Hoggle," Jareth declared in a brisk yet mild tone. "You're more repulsive to me now than you've ever been during the past two centuries. Go back to your own kingdom."

Hoggle stared at him for a full minute with wide eyes.

"Really?" he asked hopefully. "You mean that?" he added, then frowned.

"But the bet was for five centuries."

"Mine," Sarah voiced dreamily caressing the crystal still clutched in both her hands.

"Do me the honor, would you?" Jareth asked of Hoggle, nodding his head towards Sarah.

Knowing what Jareth was requesting, Hoggle stepped closer and slowly waved a hand over Sarah's face.

Her eyes slid closed in sleep, her head slumped to rest on Jareth's shoulder.

The crystal held loosely in her now limp hands slowly dissipated.

Both Fae looked upon her affectionately, both with their own regrets regarding her.

"Be more careful about the bets you make," Jareth stated to Hoggle in a kind manner. "And we'll call it even."

"Thank you, Jareth," Hoggle stated sincerely, looking at Sarah mournfully.

"I hope there's no hard feelings for…" He raised his gaze to Jareth's. "Well, for anything."

"You've been a devoted friend, Hoggle," Jareth responded sincerely. "Taking on my duties in my absence was no easy task, I won't forget that."

"Bah," Hoggle sounded, waving off Jareth's words. "I was just too much of a coward to go in after you."

"No," Jareth replied earnestly. "You were the brave one who stuck it out."

That was a big compliment coming from Jareth and Hoggle knew it.

Seeing how the king was being generous, he decided to push his luck.

"I don't suppose you'd save me the journey, and just send me home magically?" he asked hopefully.

Jareth threw his head back and laughed heartily, stepping past Hoggle to make his way back to the castle with Sarah sleeping in his arms.

"I didn't think so."

XxXxX

Sarah opened her eyes and squinted against the bright sunlight that flooded the large airy room.

She moaned deep in her throat when she attempted to move and felt as though she had been hit by a Mack truck.

"Good morning."

She held her breath, letting the sound of that voice register in her mind.

'_No, it can't be…_'

"Actually it's late afternoon, but since you've just awoken…"

She opened her eyes again and slowly turned her head in the direction the voice had come from.

"It might help if you breathed."

"Jareth."

She let out her held breath with his name.

"Twice in just as many days."

He smiled at her.

She frowned then closed her eyes against the pounding in her temples. Raising her hand to her head she actually whimpered.

"You're head will clear shortly," he informed her with a concerned frown.

"As for your bruises, I must apologize profusely. I wasn't myself at the time. Though, in my own defense, I'm not in any better shape."

She cracked an eye open at him, saw the almost healed scratches on his cheek, then closed it again.

"Nice to know you can bruise too."

"Yes, about that, I owe you a debt of gratitude."

"The labyrinth made me," she stated against the throbbing in her head.

"The labyrinth merely showed you the path, Sarah. You did the rest of your own accord."

"Can we talk about this later? I hurt."

"You're beautiful."

"You have bad timing for compliments. I look like shit."

She slit an eye open in his direction again, then closed it.

"You cleaned up very well though."

"Why, thank you," he preened, straightening his back proudly.

She groaned.

"Go away and let me rest."

"I'll fetch something for you to eat," he told her lightheartedly.

He rose from the chair by the bed and leaned over her to kiss her temple before stepping from the room with light steps.

"Ugh, he better not be cheery like that every morning, I'll kill him."

XxXxX

"Feeling better?" he asked when he returned later with a tray of food.

"Yes, much," she replied, sitting up in the bed.

"Why was I in so much pain anyway? Besides the obvious physical bruises, that is."

He winced inwardly at the reminder that he'd hurt her, but answered her question in a light tone while placing the food tray over her lap.

"You managed to not become lost in the Forgotten Forest. Your headache was an after effect of fighting against the enchantment."

"You're kidding me, right?" she asked, looking at him with exasperation.

"I remember laughing like a loon, wrestling you on the ground for a crystal! That crystal was the only thing I cared about at the time. How is that fighting the enchantment?"

He diverted his eyes from her and seated himself on the edge of his bed. When he spoke it was with a very quiet voice.

"The labyrinth told me that she had spoken to you," he glanced at her. "She brought forth that memory from your mind knowing that it was the connection between us that you needed to draw me out with."

He let his eyes fall down cast once more.

"I don't remember her doing that," Sarah told him honestly.

She watched him as he struggled to contain his dignity, to hide his remorse and embarrassment at what he had done.

He suddenly raised his head, turning his face away from her intent gaze, and drew in a deep breath as though to speak.

"The Labyrinth didn't have to delve too deeply for that memory, Jareth," she admitted to him softly, looking down at the tray of food on her lap.

"It's never been too far from my thoughts."

He turned his attention back towards her in stunned silence. He noticed the rise in color to her cheeks as he looked upon her. As beautiful as she was at fifteen, she was even more so now with the refinement of maturity.

"I guess I was fighting to claim a dream I had lost so long ago."

She chanced a glance his way from the corner of her eye.

"None the less," he stated more factually, being at a loss as to her meaning and not daring to believe she meant what he thought she was implying.

"You managed to do something in five hours what my entire kingdom couldn't do in five years."

"It's been twenty-seven years on my side," she remarked frowning.

"I truly lost myself to be gone so long," he whispered under his breath.

The labyrinth hadn't told him of the exact time difference between the worlds.

He bowed his head with remorse while Sarah had a sudden realization.

"Oh, shit! Toby is going to be so pissed!" she exclaimed suddenly, covering her face with her hand.

She peeked at Jareth through splayed fingers.

"I left Zachary with a goblin babysitter!"

"Who's Zachary?"

"My nephew," she exhaled, letting her head fall back to the headboard.

"Oh, god, how do I let myself get talked into these things?"

"Toby has a son?" Jareth frowned, feeling more lost than before.

She realized by his expression that he hadn't been 'filled in' about the Aboveground at all. In a softer tone she explained.

"He's twenty-eight now. He married Judy Stratton, now Judy Williams, six years ago, and they have a four years old son named Zachary."

She frowned and turned her gaze from Jareth.

"Who apparently has been calling goblins to play with for some time now. I knew there was something odd about that boy," she whispered more to herself. "No three years old puts socks on his ears and hides in closets!"

"And what of you, Sarah?" he asked softly, wanting to hear if Hoggle was correct in his comment about Sarah waiting for him.

"Have you married? Had children?"

"Me?" She looked upon him with raised brows then shrugged and picked at a piece of toast on the tray.

"No," she replied quietly, suddenly uncomfortable with the turn in conversation.

"I never…"

'_met anyone that I wanted to be with forever_,' she added in thought.

But that was a lie. She had met someone. Someone who filled her dreams night and day, someone who fascinated her beyond anyone else she'd ever met, someone who made her feel alive, someone who was now sitting right next to her.

"… married."

This was awkward to say the least.

Here she was recuperating from her ordeal in the Forgotten Forest because Jareth had been so distraught over her rejection that he had given up on everything.

And she had no idea how to tell him, or let him know in some way, that she wanted to stay with him. She wanted to try and make up for all the hurt she caused him because she'd never been able to forget him.

His heart hammered in his chest.

'_Had she truly been waiting for me as Hoggle had said?_'

"I actually have a very boring life," she informed him nonchalantly, reducing a slice of toast into small crumbs one piece at a time as a diversion.

'_Maybe if I gave a hint that I have no one in my life…_'

"In fact, except for Toby's wedding and Zachary being born, you're the most exciting thing that's ever happened to me."

'_She wants to stay_,' he thought. '_Dear Labyrinth, she wants to stay! She thinks me exciting!_'

She risked a glance towards him when he remained silent.

An odd feeling coursed through her at the expression in his eyes. The feeling wasn't quite dread, but it left her feeling uneasy none the less.

His face actually looked… flushed, and the energy that was emanating from him was almost tangible.

"Pretty pathetic, I know," she remarked with an uneasy chuckle, trying to muster some dignity, and turned her face away from him.

Somehow that wasn't the reaction she had expected and felt extremely foolish at the moment.

"I have to get dressed and go home," she stated quietly, and moved the tray from her lap.

He still remained silent.

'_Nothing,' _she thought_. 'Heh, so much for dreams._'

She obviously didn't appease to him anymore- twenty-seven years later that is. He fell in love with a young and innocent girl, not a forty-two years old woman who was boring and pathetic.

"I'll have a lot of explaining to do," she told him, just to break the increasing silence.

"Unless your goblin girl made herself look like me for the past couple of days… or however long I've been here."

"Don't move," he commanded softly.

He was so excited about her revelation that he couldn't move.

He wanted to grab her and swing her in his arms with elation, but feared he'd harm her.

He wanted to dance and shout and his heart pumped hurtfully in his chest.

He needed to fly!

She turned her attention to him curiously and noticed that he was shaking physically, his eyes…glowed.

"Give me one moment." He raised one finger, his eyes bore intently into hers.

"Just wait… don't move… stay here…"

In a blur of movement he was off the bed and suddenly airborne, making an escape out the window.

Sarah slumped her shoulders in bewilderment as she stared after him. He'd changed so fast that all he had been was a blur of motion. A moment later the very foundation of the castle trembled.

"YYYeSSSSS!"

Sarah blinked, recognizing his voice that boomed and echoed throughout the kingdom like thunder.

Another moment and he returned through the window, changing back just as quickly as he had the first time.

"Now what were you saying about returning home?" he asked casually, his stance light but confident. "I didn't quite catch that part."

He reseated himself on the edge of the bed, sitting closer to her than before.

"I was distracted at how exciting you find me to be."

"I left… Zachary with a goblin," she whispered, completely entranced by him.

How his eyes sparkled with happiness, how he looked at her with a pleased and wistful smile.

"Toby's going to be pissed."

"Stay with me," he commanded more than asked.

"Yes," she replied within a breath.

His eyes briefly showed his surprise at how quickly she had answered, then he smiled radiantly.

Leaving the bed, he held his hand out to her.

"Come, we will face Sir Toby together then get you settled in your new home."

She took his hand, about to remind him that she wasn't dressed in anything but a sleeping gown, when her clothes were suddenly adorning her body.

He smirked at her reaction.

"You thought I hadn't noticed," he announced cockily, his entire temperament jovial.

"Maybe you should take another flight," she suggested cautiously, eyeing him warily.

"You'd scare the baby acting as you are. Actually, you're scaring me acting as you are."

He grinned and pulled her into an embrace against his chest.

She gasped and put her hands near his shoulders in response.

"Come with me," he breathed excitedly. "Let me show you the breath taking wonder of the labyrinth from the sky!"

"You've lost it, haven't you?" she asked, but found herself chuckling at his good mood.

"I can't fly," she reminded him. "Nor do I wish to."

She shifted more comfortably in his embrace.

"And you," she tapped his nose playfully with a finger. "Are not Peter Pan, nor Aladdin with a flying carpet, or a genie, and definitely not Casper."

"Who's Casper?" he frowned at her curiously.

"The friendly ghost," she replied with a chuckled.

"Oh, well that's a different realm," he mumbled. "None the less, I wish you to come with me."

"I'm not that fond of heights, Jareth," she admitted.

"I would never let you fall," he replied simply in a most sincere tone, looking down at her with his head tilted back slightly.

Her nod of acceptance was barely noticeable, but her sudden death grip of his shirt in her fists wasn't.

She rested her forehead on his chest and squeezed her eyes shut, not sure of what to prepare herself for.

She felt a slight wave of dizziness then a cool breeze brushing around her body, blowing her hair in wisps from her back.

"Open your eyes, Sarah, and behold my kingdom," he urged in a tone of voice that beheld pride over what was his.

She opened her eyes and tried to see peripherally without moving but couldn't with his arms wrapped around her shoulders.

Having to pick her head up from his chest, she turned her head to the side.

Her breath caught in her throat at the view before her feet.

They stood upon the top most part of the castle overlooking the entire kingdom. She was standing on the opposite side of the view she had first beheld when he brought her here at fifteen.

The sun was setting, splaying fingers of color over everything the suns rays touched.

"It's beautiful," she whispered in awe, somehow knowing that the word didn't do this justice. "Magnificent, splendid, …stunning."

He held her in his arms with his chin held high.

He was sharing one of his dreams with her and she didn't even know it.

He truly felt the king proudly overlooking everything that was his, honored that for the first time he did not stand alone.

"What's that?" she questioned, pointing to a circular shimmering spot, similar to a crystal, high in the sky.

"That's the portal to the Aboveground," he answered, and nuzzled his face in her hair, closing his eyes to cherish this moment.

"I don't remember seeing that before."

"You can only see it from the skies, or close to it," he murmured, holding her tighter to make her feel safe.

She tilted her face into the breeze and breathed deeply then opened her eyes to look at Jareth.

"That scent."

She inhaled deeply again.

"That's your scent," she breathed and raised her eyes wonderingly. "You really are a part of this place, aren't you?"

"Yes."

He held a hand at the side of her shoulder.

"I have something for you," he whispered, smirking just slightly at the age old words they shared.

Her wondrous expression faded to doubt and uncertainty, she didn't want to see the crystal she knew he held at his fingertips.

"The time of trickery between us is long passed, Sarah, let me show you what I have to offer."

His voice was deep and sincere, his eyes reflecting that sincerity.

Hesitantly, she turned her face to the side to find his hand palm up and empty.

Before she could frown or look back at him questioningly, he folded three fingers to his palm, enclosing them with his thumb, and turned his wrist to point behind her.

She turned slightly in his arms, letting him enfold his arms across her chest as she leaned her back against him.

The sun was almost below the horizon, vibrant colors of gold and hues of red, purple and orange burst through the sky.

The brilliance of it took her breath away.

"I give you everything you see before you, as my queen," he whispered close to her ear.

She was completely overwhelmed.

She never thought beyond being in his arms, sharing a life with him in an enchanted kingdom with odd creatures as inhabitants.

She never once considered what status she would gain by becoming his queen.

"I can't accept this, Jareth," she whispered. "It's too much."

Her voice trembled with her emotions.

His arms tightened around her like steel bands.

"I won't let you go, Sarah," he nearly growled in her ear. "I can't… I won't!"

"Don't let me go," she said agreeably, turning her head to the side toward him. "But all this is… too much… it's…"

She tried to look back at him and had to wait for him to loosen his hold of her so she could turn to face him.

"I've only dreamt of having you, Jareth, not the entire kingdom."

"I suppose it could be overwhelming at first," he allotted after a moment of consideration, glancing over her head to view the scene before him.

"But I am one with the kingdom, Sarah, as you yourself have just pointed out. To have me is to have the kingdom as well."

She regarded him thoughtfully for a moment, watching the changing colors of sunset reflect in his eyes.

Finally he lowered his gaze to hers.

"Well then, I guess I'm lucky that one of you is a piece of cake," she smiled slyly up at him.

He studied her intently at first then a smirk appeared on his lips.

"And the other?" he asked whimsically.

"I'll have to spend a lot of time with the other," she stated with feigned contemplation. "I have a feeling he's the challenge of a lifetime."

She snaked her fingers through his hair.

"And the excitement in my life."

"I haven't begun to show you excitement yet," he gleamed with mischief in his eyes. "But I'm about to."

He bent his head over hers as she raised her lips to meet his.

Deepening their kiss, each with fingers entwined in the other's hair, neither noticed the parade of inhabitants that rushed the goblin city on their return from the Forgotten Forest.

The Labyrinth breathed deeply and rearranged the walls of her maze while expanding herself out further.

After all, her queen had finally come home, and her king was finally happy.

___________________________________________________________________________

A/N: I was so tempted to leave it at that… but I have a few loose ends to tie up, as I'm sure you noticed. Please leave a review, I am interested in your opinion.


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